On behalf of the Ecological Society of Japan, and the Local Organizing Committee of the 8th EAFES International Congress, we would like to welcome you all to participate in the 8th EAFES International Congress, April 21st-23rd, 2018, Nagoya, Japan.The aim of EAFES is to promote and develop ecological science and academic societies in East Asia by organizing symposia, academic meetings, and joint research collaboratively among the Ecological Society of China (ESC), the Ecological Society of Japan (ESJ), and the Ecological Society of Korea (ESK). Recently, the Society of Subtropical Ecology in Taiwan and the ILTER East Asia-Pacific Regional Network also joined the members of the executive committee. The 1st EAFES International Congress was held in Mokpo, South Korea in October 2004 and afterwards biennially. Since then, every International Congress has been coordinated in turn by ESK, ESJ, and ESC: Niigata, Japan (2006); Beijing, P.R. China (2007); Sangju, South Korea (2010); Otsu, Japan (2012); Haikou, P.R. China (2014); and Daegu, South Korea (2016).The theme of the 8th EAFES International Congress is "The Role of East Asian Ecology in a Changing World", Focusing on the role of ecology and ecologists in promoting harmonious and sustainable development in the context of global climate change and socio-economic shifts. East Asian countries are facing the challenge of establishing a new perspective in the wake of rapid economic growth with aging populations, deteriorated environments and significant biodiversity loss. Therefore, at this EAFES Congress we expect a wide range of topics on new trends in ecology with innovative technologies as well as paradigm changes including interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches.